Silver Coins
by Star Ash Myst
Summary: "I saw him fasten silver coins to the eyelids of a werewolf child, blinding her, in an attempt to get the girl to tell him where her brother was."  -Luke  This is my story, telling about the werewolf girl, her brother, and why Valentine wanted him.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This is my first Mortal Instruments Fanfiction. Personally, I'm a Harry Potter Fanfiction writer. However, on my way to homeroom one morning, I suddenly had an idea of what to write. I'm not saying it's the greatest idea, but I thought it would be fun to write. Whether or not it is fun to read, well, that is entirely up to you. :)

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"Nick, I'm sca-"

"Sh! Allie! I'm listening!"

Watery-eyed, the six-year-old girl looked around, staying rooted to the spot next to her older brother. "What do you hear?" she whispered, clutching at his hand so hard that his fingers grew cold and numb.

"I don't know," the thirteen-year-old boy whispered back in reply. "Must be…it just must be my imagination." He smiled at his sister, disentangling his hand from hers and wrapping his arm around her shoulders, drawing her close to him in a gesture of comfort. "Everything's okay."

Ever since their parents had died two years ago, the two siblings had gotten pretty close. Nicholas always looked after his baby sister, and he always would-he swore it to himself. Little Allie knew that her big brother Nick always kept his promises. They'd bounced from orphanage to orphanage for a while until a couple finally wanted Allie-and only Allie.

_I shouldn't be running away with her. I should let them take care of her! This isn't safe-it's stupid!_

Allie pressed herself against Nick's side. As if she knew what he was thinking, she said "I didn't like them, Nick. I want to stay with you. N'matter what!" she ended with little girl stubbornness dripping off her words.

He smiled and gave her shoulders another squeeze. They started walking again but halted almost immediately at the sound of breaking twigs. "I heard it too," she whispered, though he hadn't said anything. "Nick….what is it?" She clung to him, and then a low growling sound was heard.

"Who's afraid of the big, bad wolf…?" someone sang softly. The eerie song seemed to end in a growl-as if whoever was singing wasn't human, but something else, something unnatural.

Nicholas shouted and was already dragging his little sister before she could register what it was he'd said-_run!_

"NICK!" Allie shouted in terror as a wolf leapt at the both of them. There was no man-but the wolf was more terrifying than the creepy singing. Nick fell to the ground with the wolf on top of him. Nick kicked it back feebly, and then didn't get back up.

"Nick! Get up! You gots to get up! Nick! Nick! Please get up! Please Nick! Get up!"

The wolf pounced on top of her and she screamed. "Get away! Get away! Nick! Nick!" She tried to punch the wolf in the snout, but missed, and its jaws clamped down on her arm. There was a crack of bones breaking. The sight of blood made her feel suddenly dizzy. The wolf released her arm and it fell painfully across her chest, causing another scream to tear from her throat. The wolf howled and then its teeth went towards her throat. Allie squeezed her eyes shut. _If you can't see the monsters, the monsters can't see you._ She opened them again because it was even scarier not knowing when she was sure pain was going to come.

Everything seemed to go out of focus. All that mattered was that there was a wolf on her chest, making her terrified breathing even more labored. Her heart thundered painfully against her ribs, and she imagined the wolf could feel it beneath its paws. It was as if it was trying to get a lifetime of beats in before it stopped forever. The locket Nick had stolen for her for their first Christmas alone had managed not to tear from her throat, and the charm had fallen around to the back of her neck, as if trying to choke her. The gold line made it look as though her throat had already been slit.

If she had to time to think of anything at all, she'd have remembered the night Nick had gotten it for her. Christmas Eve, he'd been escorted back to the orphanage with the sheepish expression that meant he was trying to look guilty. The woman in charge of the orphanage had yelled at him, and Allie had put down the toy she'd been playing with it and tugged him away from her. Nick had always said that no one could resist his baby sister, and she had given the angry woman her best smile.

He'd taken her up to their room, and pulled the small box out from his pocket. "A pretty locket for the lady," he'd said with a little mock bow. She'd squealed with delight, demanding to know where he'd gotten it, and he'd told her. He'd told her about stealing two things so that the guard would only take one if he got caught. In a hushed voice, he'd explained the entire adventure, sworn her to secrecy, and made her promise never to do the same.

However, it was impossible to think of happy memories like that. Everything hurt, and she was getting dizzier and dizzier by the second. Black spots were bouncing and fighting to block her vision. Her ears were ringing so badly that she couldn't hear the screams tearing themselves free from her throat, begging for Nick to get up, for someone to save her. The ringing sound got worse and worse until she didn't even know if any sound was coming from her mouth as she sobbed for her mommy and daddy. Only one shape broke through her blackened vision-that of another wolf. There was one sound that broke through the high-pitched ringing in her ears-the howling of another wolf and that was the last thing she heard before passing out on the muddy ground.

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Thanks to the greatest Beta ever: Jmarcinikglsd! Oh, crap. Now she's going to get a big head... Hehe. Love you Jul! :)


	2. Chapter 2

Well everybody thanks for reviewing! Ha….haha… Sorry-had to say it. Anyways-please review-I really would like to know what you think-good or bad.

Again, thanks to my awesome beta-Jmarcinikglsd! (Pst! If you're a twilight fan, look her up! She's a great writer too!)

Anyways-Allie's having a dream, hence the italicized stuff. Read and hope you like it!

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"_Mommy! Daddy!"_

"_You have to wake up, Allie." That was her father-messy red hair, bright green eyes similar to Nick's. He wore silver-rimmed glasses perched on the edge of his nose just like he had before he'd died with her mother in the car crash. _

"_I don't wanna wake up! It was scary when I fell asleep. Nick-"_

"_Nicholas needs you, Allie." This time it was her mother who spoke. She had mousy brown hair and stormy gray eyes, just like Allie. You have to wake up."_

"_He's a big kid. He don't need me…"_

"_Your big brother needs you just like you need him. You need to stick together."_

"_I gotted Nick hurt," she mumbled miserably. "I didn't want to leave without him and so we left and the wolf gotted us. What if it eated him? Besides-I want to stay with you! I miss you!"_

_They were waving goodbye. Allie ran after them, and they got further and further away; it was like trying to catch a missed bus._

"_Allie, wake up. Please wake up. Please Allie." It sounded a bit like her father, but his lips weren't moving. The images of her parents disappeared, bringing a searing pain in her left arm, and a blinding light._

"Please Allie-you've got to wake up." It was Nick-her big brother. He was crying, holding her right hand in his hands.

"Wh-what's wrong Nick?"

He smiled, as if to erase the miserable helplessness of his face that had been there a second ago. Nick had never let his baby sister see him cry-never. Not when she was convinced that he was strong enough to protect her.

Instead, he ignored her question, still smiling a little sadly. "Hey Sleeping Beauty," he whispered in a semi-hoarse voice, pushing her hair out of her eyes.

Allie grinned, looking pleased. "Mulan's better."

His smile seemed a little happier. "Sleeping Mulan, then." She giggled, and he wiped at his eyes. "Are you alright?"

"My arm hurts," she complained, as if just remembering the pain of it. "Are you oka-who're you?" She looked past him at the man who stood in the doorway. He was wearing old jeans and a flannel shirt. He had brown hair, and warm blue eyes behind a pair of gold-rimmed spectacles.

Nick seemed to go into defensive mode. His body tensed as if he thought he ought to attack the stranger, moving so that his baby sister could barely see him anymore. He always did that, and talking to people she didn't know was a bad habit Allie had always had.

Still, the man smiled nicely at her. "My name is Lucian Graymark, and I'm glad to see you're both awake. What are your names?"

Allie opened her mouth to reply, but Nick beat her to it. "John and Sally Johnson," he lied.

"Nick!" Allie complained, glaring at him for a moment. "He's Nicholas Barnes, and I'm Allison. " She grinned at him. "Hi Lu-su…Lu-shu…Lu-see…"

"Lucian," he repeated with a smile. "Call me Luke."

"Luke," she repeated. "Allie and Nick." She pointed at herself and her brother in turn.

"How are you two feeling?"

"Fine," Nick replied hurriedly as Allie picked at the tight bandages setting her broken arm together. "Can we go now?"

Luke blinked. "I think it would be safer for you if you stay here."

Nick eyed him evenly. "And why do you think that?"

"Do you remember anything about last night?"

"We was attacked by wolves!" Allie announced. "How did you-?"

"I was there," Luke admitted. "I prevented him from killing you."

Nick glanced at his sister's broken arm. "Thank you. But…wolves shouldn't be here. They're not common, are they? And…the wolf looked strange…something about it…" He seemed less defensive and more curious.

"There were two," Allie added. "I think you were sleeping when the second one came. I heard it growl."

He looked at his sister, puzzled. "There were two?"

"I think so," she said slowly. "I mean, I didn't _see_ it, but I _heard _it. Did you see another wolf Luke?" Allie stared at him, looking as if she were beginning to doubt what she'd heard.

"There were two," Luke agreed. "And they looked different because they were werewolves."

"_Werewolves?"_ Nick asked incredulously. "But there's no such thing as-"

"Werewolves exist," Luke said forcefully. "As do a great many other things. That's for another story."

"But if they were werewolves…" Allie trailed off, looking up at Luke thoughtfully. "Are you a werewolf hunter?"

"No," Luke said, and his smile seemed fake, almost painful. "I was the other werewolf."

Nick grabbed his sister and dragged her to a corner, standing in front of her, fists raised. "Let us out of here," he commanded, his voice low.

"Nick-if werewolves don't exist, how come you believe he's one?"

"I-it doesn't matter. He's either a madman, or a werewolf. Either way, I don't care. Let us go." The man had made no move towards them, save to look at them.

"He said he saved us."

"He could be lying," Nick argued.

"He wouldn't lie and then tell the truth Nick!" she said, annoyed at him. "And he wouldn't save us to hurt us. Nick-I like him."

"You like everyone," he barked at her. "Be quiet Allie!"

"But if he's a werewolf-!"

"Allie! Please!" He was scared. His eyes were darting as if looking for a way to escape.

"You should listen to her," Luke said, and he sounded tired-so tired. And sad.

His fists didn't lower, but he stopped speaking. "If we was attacked by a werewolf, then aren't we werewolves too?" Allie poked her head out from behind her big brother.

"Tell the truth," Nick commanded. He sounded just as tired.

"Not all werewolf bites result in lycanthropy," he began with an air of someone who had said that exact phrase many times before. "Please, sit down, and I'll explain. I won't hurt you."

Nick relented. He wasn't reassured by the man, but he was exhausted, the adrenaline fear had packed into his veins evaporating giving way to pain. His leg hurt. He looked down at himself. He was wearing different clothes-sort of like the pajamas you got at the hospital. He could feel the roughness of bandages pressing into the skin of the leg that hurt. _Where the werewolf bit me,_ he thought miserably.

He sat back down on the bed and hoisted his sister into his lap, wrapping his arms around her stomach protectively. Allie was wearing similar clothes to him, and they were obviously too big for her. He wondered if any other brothers were stupid enough to run away and take their baby sisters at night. Nick's stomach twisted in guilt with her bandaged arm. It was in a sling, and he wondered if it was broken.

"What's lice…lick…Like, um, Ly-can…fo, I mean fro…?"

"Lycanthropy," Luke repeated; he smiled, but it quickly vanished. "Is the name of, I guess the _disease_ of being a werewolf."

"Is there a way to reverse it?" Nicholas asked; his sister's voice had taken him out of his guilt-filled thoughts.

"No, I'm afraid there isn't. If there was…" He trailed off, as if he couldn't finish the hopeful thought.

"Are we going to become werewolves too? And, how can you tell?" Nick inquired. He didn't know why he was believing the man, until he remembered the evidence at the back of his mind.

_Who's afraid of the big, bad wolf?_

Nick's fingers clasped convulsively together, though the pressure didn't disturb Allie. He remembered, so well, reading the Three Little Pigs to his baby sister. _"Who's afraid of the big bad wolf, the big bad wolf, the big bad wolf? Who's afraid of the big bad wolf? Tra-la-la-la-la!"_

He almost missed what Luke said next. "-can't tell until the full moon whether or not you're a werewolf. If you are, you'll change, and if not, you won't."

"That's it then?" Nick demanded. "We have to stay here until the next full moon? When is that, even?"

"Only a couple of weeks. Contrary to popular belief, werewolves don't need the full moon to change, or even night. The change can only be forced on you when the moon is full. But if you are werewolves, you won't be able to change until after your first transformation. You don't have to stay here. You can go back to your parents, but you must come back for the full moon, or they could get hurt."

"Mommy and daddy are gone," Allie murmured immediately. Nick felt her draw closer to him, seeking comfort. Her tiny fingers picked at the bottom of her shirt and she stared at her hands. He tucked her hair behind her ears with a brotherly affectionate flick of his fingers.

"It happened two years ago," Nick said calmly, but looked at Luke with anger. _Don't talk about it,_ his look said.

"Then you are welcome to stay here."

"What if we're not werewolves?" Nick challenged.

Luke hesitated. "We'll find you a place to stay."

Nick stared at Luke for a moment, trying to read him. He had always been so good at reading people, but this werewolf seemed impossible to read.

"I'm hungry," Allie declared suddenly. "Can we get something to eat?"

Nick actually grinned. He kissed the top of her head in an affectionate, brotherly manner. She giggled happily at the smile she'd managed to get out of him. Some things would never change.

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